EasyJet's chairman, Sir Mike Rake, has survived the latest attempt to unseat him by the airline's founder and largest shareholder, Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, after a resolution at an extraordinary general meeting was voted down by a majority of 53% to 47%.

The airline said the vast majority of other shareholders had backed Rake, who is also deputy chairman of Barclays. However, at 96%, the proportion of votes cast by shareholders other than Stelios and his family was less than the 99.3% who supported the chairman in a vote at this year's annual meeting.

Haji-Ioannou said: "This vote does not change the simple fact that Mike Rake was asleep at the Barclays switch when the Libor scandal broke.I hope this sad episode will highlight the need for tougher guidelines on the number of corporate directorships any one person can hold. The current practice of collecting them like boy scout badges – BT, Barclays, McGraw-Hill and easyJet – needs to end."

Speaking after the meeting at easyJet's headquarters in Luton, deputy chairman Charles Gurassa said: "The board continues to seek a constructive relationship with all its shareholders and urges Sir Stelios and easyGroup to engage with easyJet. I and other members of the board are available to meet with them at any time".

Meanwhile, easyJet threw its hat into the ring with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic to operate services between London and Moscow. The Civil Aviation Authority will decide in October on two British airlines to be granted two daily flights to Russia's capital.

Catherine Lynn, easyJet's commercial director, said: "The fares on the London-Moscow route are currently notoriously high. EasyJet's low-cost operating model can't be matched by BA or Virgin and we believe that the award of traffic rights to either of them would provide much less downward pressure on prices and much less benefit to consumers."